Energy is the weakest link in sustaining a growing population. The infrastructure we take for granted would collapse catastrophically without the benefit of cheap energy. read more
The rate of human population growth peaked in 1964, at about 2.1% per year. For example, Indonesia's population grew from 97 million in 1961 to 237.6 million in 2010, a 145% increase in 49 years. In India, the population grew from 361.1 million people in 1951 to just over 1.2 billion by 2011, a 235% increase in 60 years. read more
You are more likely to read about population growth in a letter to the editor than in a news story or editorial. When President-elect Barack Obama pledged in late 2008 to bring U.S. carbon dioxide emissions to their 1990 levels by 2020, environmentalists struggled to swallow their dismay. read more